This invention relates to polarographic measurement of flux from biological specimens as small as a single cell.
It has been known to use an electrode to polarographically measure oxygen in blood or in tissue samples. As described, for example, in Reissue Pat. No. 31,299, a polarographic oxygen sensor with a reduction electrode and a reference electrode can be used to sense oxygen in samples, such as gases, blood, and tissue. Other oxygen sensors have also been used for measuring dissolved oxygen in such samples.
Other methods have been employed for sensing oxygen for a single cell, but these other approaches typically use highly invasive or intrusive techniques. It would be desirable to be able to measure oxygen and other molecules for specimens as small as a single cell in a non-invasive and non-intrusive manner.